Web Christian Blog

When it comes to webdesign – Christian or otherwise – there are no rules. Everything you read on this website will be for guidance only and you should remember that about anything you read.

Of course some guidelines are very strong guidlines but you will always be free to break them.

One of the great joys of the Internet is that it is a place you can experiment. There are no web police making sure you follow the rules of good design and if you have a good reason for doing something then you can just go ahead and do it.

The only thing I would say though is that if you decide to follow your own rules you have to be prepared for others not to like it – and to quite possibly comment on it. If people don’t like it then they will be very tempted to just click and go somewhere else. Most people’s temptation threshold on the Internet is very low indeed.

So follow your own rules but don’t neglect to understand the guidelines.

admin Thoughts web design guidelines, web design rules

I’m not a Mormon myself and as a Protestant Christian I disagree with much of what they teach but they do seem to have grasped the idea behind technology. You can read a story about their latest efforts here.

According to Alexa Mormon web sites are amoung the most popular church web sites in the world (if not the most popular).

I think there is something to be learned by all Christian groups here:

• embrace the technology and invest in it – the Internet is one of the most cost effective ways of sharing the Christian message
• centralise efforts – it’s better to have several hard working sites that are well used and well funded than 1000s spread all over the place
• encourage members to use the sites
• have a plan

admin Thoughts internet ministry, mormon

I love to read philosophy. I can’t say I understand it all and I have trouble remembering all the isms but it doesn’t stop me getting pleasure from the challenge of thinking. But does this process have any part in trying to get the message of Jesus out to others? Is there a need for websites that answer the tough questions or should we just be loving people into the kingdom?

This is a really hard question to answer but I think the answer is that part of loving someone is helping them to understand. I would be a poor parent if I neglected to answer the questions that they ask about the world.

I don’t for a minute think that anyone will ever become a Christian by arguing with them. There is more to being a follower of Jesus Christ than simply understanding the answers. There will be no theology quiz at the pearly gates.

However there are some big questions that keep people away from following Jesus. If Christians don’t take answering those questions seriously then we are failing to help people. It is not enough to tell people that the questions don’t matter because for some people they really do.

One of the places that people go to for answers is the Internet, this is particularly true of those who are growing up with the Internet. The Christian church must take this seriously.

So I want to make an appeal for more and more websites that answer the questions. We must engage with people on the Internet in a serious way.

admin Thoughts, online ministry web ministry

I’ve spent a good many years now trying to communicate through the written word and I can honestly say that it is very very difficult. I have lost count of the number of times that people have misunderstood what I have written. Writing is not the same as conversation although good writing has a conversational style to it. The time I tend to be misunderstood the most is when I have to write a quick email to someone because quick emails tend to look harsh and aggressive. As we try to shorten something in to as few words as possible we can easily lose the true meaning of what we are trying to convey. Although there is always a fine line between writing too much (which can also get us into trouble) and writing too little.

I think this has major implications for Christians. When we write something for the web we run the risk of being misunderstood. When we respond to a forum or blog entry which we disagree with then we stand a chance of upsetting people without realising it. Of course early emailers understood this problem and invented smilies but these have been so abused that they have now become almost useless and the same with texters and such things as lol.

So I want to make an appeal to Christians to try and find ways of writing in a more sensitive way – especially when touching on spiritual issues with non-Christians.

admin Thoughts writing

I like church pews – as long as the preacher isn’t long winded – because they offer flexibility when you are trying to get more people into the building. However these days perhaps the only time it’s needed is when the local school are using the church for their Christmas play for mums and dads. Any of my friends will tell you that I have made the suggestion to remove the pews in more than a few churches. Whilst I like pews I also like flexibility and having something comfortable to sit on.

The Internet has the reputation of evolving at the kind of pace that no one can really ever keep up with. However I think a lot of the evolution of the web is down to getting rid of stuff that should perhaps never have been invented in the first place.

Here are some of my ideas about things on church websites that are a little like pews in a church building – I see what they were trying to do but perhaps it’s time to move on:

1. Jesus Saves banners – in your face evangelistic messages on web sites are a recipe for sending people somewhere else, even most Christians get put off by them.
2. Splash pages – those annoying pages that get in the way when you are trying to view a web site. They still sometimes sneak in on the pretense of sending people to the right web site but personally I’d rather see a web site and then choose where to go.
3. Hidden navigation – when the only way to find out how to navigate is by hovering over every image on a page to find out what goes where. Horrible!
4. Visitor numbers signs – there is nothing more depressing than visiting a web site that says 20 people have visited this site in the last 10 years. Even if the site has something good to offer it just puts you off. It also doesn’t work if you have large numbers visiting – just because people get to your site doesn’t mean the site is any good.
5. Last updated in 1896 – you know what I’m talking about. This is especially true for blogs that last had an update in 2005. If you don’t have lots to add then get rid of the dates that show your site to be out of date. Let the content speak for itself and not the date.
6. Sites crammed with all the latest web gadgets. Unless you have a very good reason for a gadget leave it alone. Please never, ever put in some Javascript that changes the cursor on your site!
7. Sound on web pages – this is still happening too often. By all means use video and sound that people can control but if your page comes up with some sound playing people will go elsewhere very quickly. When I personally get this I tend to click away before I ever read anything on a site – like the majority I like to browse in peace or with something else in the background. You also never know what that shouting person is going to say from their web site and if others are listening it could get embarrassing so people just go elsewhere.
8. Intrusive adverts – do people really think we are more likely to buy something because they have annoyed us? Some churches still use free hosting that uses popup adverts etc. Sometimes the adverts are also a little inappropriate for a church site. It’s better to pay for hosting even if you can only afford the very cheapest.

Sorry I’ve run out of time. Why not add a comment with your own personal pew suggestions?

admin Thoughts